“Nearly 9 months following the tragic death of band member Simone Battle, girl group G.R.L. announces today that they are disbanding,” Kemosabe Records, RCA Records, Larry Rudolph and Robin Antin wrote in a statement (via Billboard). “We wish them continued success in each of their next creative endeavors.”

“We rehearsed the other day without her, and it’s just weird. But she was so passionate about singing and this group, and I feel like we’re keeping her memory alive by being together,” Emmalyn, 22, told People. “But right now we’re focused on the song and the positive message overall, about being together in hard times. We’re taking everything else one day at a time.”

“We learned so much from her,” Lauren, 25, continued. “In the video you can see her passion for performance, and you can see her strumming along to the music in the beginning. It’s us showing that she’s still part of the group. She’ll always be part of this group.”

Before her shocking death last week, Simone Battle and her GRL groupmates posed for the cover of Galore in what would become her final magazine photo shoot and interview.

The cover and interview quotes have been exclusively provided to JustJared.com. Here is what the girls had to share with the mag:

Simone on her beauty regiment: “1. Wash and exfoliate with one of those little face brushes you get from Sephora. 2. Use a little toner on a cotton pad to get those pores all cleaned out. 3. Moisturize 4. Paint on some brows! Haha I’m obsessed with brows. Even when I don’t feel like wearing makeup, good thick brows are a must for me!”

Natasha on her favorite song from their album: “It’s hard to choose but I am pretty obsessed with Rewind because of the overall 90s R&B vibe. It’s such a fun song to dance to but at the same time is also really a SINGER’S song!”

The girls on their favorite tour story: “We were performing at a show and one of our patrons gave Simone a two dollar tip. hay!”

“Words cannot express the depth of our loss. Simone‘s incredible talent was only surpassed by the size of her heart,” the ladies said in a joint statement. “We will carry her memory with us in everything we do.”

Simonedied of a reported suicide at age 25. She was found dead hanging in her closet on Friday morning (September 5) in her Los Angeles home.

We continue to send out our prayers to Simone‘s loved ones during this difficult time.